HENDERSON, Nev. (May 15, 2019) – Celebration for the No. 5 College of Southern Nevada baseball team was well-deserved but short-lived after capturing the Region 18 championships last weekend.
 
Why was the accomplishment so short? The Coyotes have to prepare to head out on the road for the NJCAA Western District championships, in hopes of qualifying for next weekend's NJCAA College World Series in Grand Junction, Colo. Southern Nevada dispatched three straight opponents but will face tougher competition this weekend.
 
CSN coach Nick Garritano said his team handled the business had to with efficiency last weekend.
 
"We are very excited for our club," he said. "We pitched the baseball and defended extremely well this past weekend. We had some guys step up and deliver some huge hits in big spots. (The Region 18 win) was an entire team effort."
 
The NJCAA Western District championships will be hosted by Lamar Community College (CO) in their ball park. The double-elimination tournament will feature four teams: CSN, Lamar, Central Arizona and Trinidad Junior College. The Coyotes will face off against Trinidad in the second game on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. MDT. 
 
Garritano said his guys handled the quick transition from winning to preparation well.
 
"We talked to our club about enjoying the Region title Saturday evening as they deserve to," he said. "On the same token, we also talked about resetting on Sunday morning realizing there is a new goal and mission this week. We will have a short practice week as there is two-day's worth of travel quickly approaching."
 
This will be Southern Nevada's first appearance in the Western District tourney since 2017. CSN captured the title that year in Yuma, Ariz., eventually advancing to the World Series where they were eliminated in two games. The Coyotes are 1-1 against the teams in the tourney, having fallen in a 5-4 shootout with Central Arizona and having earned a 13-2 run-rule victory over Trinidad State. 
 
Trinidad finished the season at 29-26 overall and fell to Lamar CC, 14-6, in the Region 9 tournament. The Trojans have a team batting average of .262 during the season, in comparison to Southern Nevada's .301 team average. 
 
Garritano said his players will expect good competition through the tournament.
 
"At this stage of the season, every team you play has had an extremely successful season and has won a championship," he said. "We expect nothing less than an ultra-competitive tournament with the winner earning a berth in the NJCAA World Series in Grand Junction next week."
 
Southern Nevada and Trinidad State will play at 7:00 p.m. MDT on Thursday. The winner of that game will advance to a winners' bracket game at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, with the loser falling to play in an elimination game at 12:00 p.m. Live stats will be available at csncoyotes.com.